Thirty miles north of Hannan New City, five thousand naval soldiers stood in neat formation, ready to attack.

About half an hour later, a white elephant appeared in everyone's sight.

On the back of the white elephant sat a young man, behind whom were a group of bare-chested Canaanite soldiers holding makeshift weapons.

The young man on the back of the white elephant was the second prince from the Canaanite Kingdom.

The Canaanite Kingdom was located in northern India, close to the Kushan Empire, so most of its people were Buddhist.

Differences in religious beliefs, coupled with the struggle for control of this sea area, led to continuous conflicts between the kingdoms of Canaan and Maha.

In the past, whoever wanted to occupy this sea area would send troops to stop them.

Therefore, upon hearing that a group of people had arrived in this sea area, the old king of Canaan sent his second prince with 5,000 soldiers to harass them.

"stop!!"

Upon seeing the Han soldiers ahead, the second prince of Canaan immediately ordered the marching troops to a halt.

"Which army is this?"

The second prince of Canaan was taken aback when he saw the neat square formation and the gleaming armor opposite him.

A Buddhist monk stepped forward and said, "Your Highness, judging from the appearance, the army opposite us seems to be the legendary Han army!"

"Han army...?"

Upon hearing those two words, the second prince of Canaan trembled and nearly fell off the elephant's back.

In the past, the Kushan Empire dominated Central Asia, and northern India, which bordered it, was also within its sphere of influence.

Dozens of kingdoms in northern India, including Canaan, were all vassal states of the Kushan Empire.

Not long ago, news of the fall of the Kushan Empire reached northern India, shocking the various countries there.

No one expected that the Kushan Empire, which had been established for hundreds of years and was once extremely powerful, would be destroyed by the Han army in less than a year.

For a time, the term "Han Army" hovered over the heads of the various countries of North India, becoming their inescapable nightmare.

Therefore, upon learning that the opposing army was the Han army, the second prince of Canaan suddenly found it difficult to breathe.

"What...what should we do?"

After taking a deep breath, the second prince of Canaan looked shakily at his subordinates beside him.

His subordinate trembled and said, "Your Highness... Your Highness, that army is even more terrifying than our suzerain state's. We definitely can't defeat them. Perhaps... perhaps we should go and surrender...?"

"Surrender?"

The second prince of Canaan was slightly taken aback, and glanced at the Han army opposite him with resentment.

He had gone to great lengths to secure the command of the army from his father, all in order to defeat the Mapi and consolidate his own position.

It's really unreasonable to surrender before we've even done anything.

Of course, what he was most worried about was the intention of these Han soldiers coming here. Were they here to help the Kingdom of Mopi deal with them, or did the Han soldiers want this place themselves?

Just as the second Canaanite prince was pondering, Ling Cao, who was in charge of commanding the Han army, also came to the front of the battle and looked at the white elephant.

Ling Cao had seen elephants in drawings by some businessmen and knew a little about them.

Although elephants have thick hides and tough flesh, they still couldn't withstand the attacks of the Han army's specially made crossbows.

"Archers, advance in formation!!"

At Ling Cao's command, a thousand naval soldiers armed with specially made crossbows stepped forward and marched in unison toward the Canaanite soldiers.

The Han army's sudden action also alarmed the Canaanite army on the opposite side.

Soon, the Han army stopped three hundred paces away from the Canaanite soldiers.

Looking at the thousand powerful crossbows in the front row of the Han army, and the arrows gleaming with a cold light, the second prince of Canaan couldn't help but swallow hard.

"Who goes there? Quickly state your name and purpose..."

Just then, a roar reached the ears of the second prince of Canaan.

Upon hearing his translator's reply, the second Canaanite prince quickly said, "We come from the Kingdom of Canaan and are merely here on an inspection tour. We have no intention of clashing with your army!"

"Then come down and talk to us on the front lines!"

"Quick...help me down!"

Upon hearing Ling Cao's request, the second prince of Canaan immediately had someone help him down from the elephant's back.

Then, bowing low, he walked towards the Han army's formation, and Ling Cao, along with several of his men, went to meet him.

Upon meeting, Ling Cao coldly said, "This area of ​​150 li in radius has been rented to us by the Kingdom of Mopi. Your intrusion is an offense, but considering that you are unaware of the situation, I will not pursue the matter. You should retreat immediately!"

"this……"

Upon hearing Ling Cao's words as translated by his subordinate, the second prince of Canaan was taken aback for a moment, then said, "General, this land belongs to our Canaan Kingdom..."

Upon hearing the words of the second prince of Canaan, Ling Cao initially intended to ignore them, but after considering the future colonization plans of the Han Dynasty, he changed his mind.

Ling Cao frowned and said, "Yours?"

"Yes, General, you may not know this, but decades ago, this land belonged to our Canaan Kingdom. Later, the Kingdom of Mopi, in alliance with the Kingdom of Lorraine, sent troops to launch a surprise attack and seized it."

Later, our country sent troops to attack again, and for many years we fought each other for control, neither of us able to hold out for long..."

"So that's how it is..."

Upon hearing the second prince of Canaan's account, Ling Cao nodded in understanding.

"Yes, General, the Kingdom of Mopi has deceived your army by using our territory to extract rent from you. It is utterly despicable!"

Ling Cao snorted coldly upon hearing this: "I don't care who it belongs to, I only know that we paid the rent, so this land belongs to us. As for other matters, go talk to the Kingdom of Mopi, don't come to us..."

Upon hearing this, the second prince of Canaan immediately showed a hint of relief. Although Ling Cao's attitude was domineering and unreasonable, he gleaned a message from it: the Han army had not yet joined forces with the Kingdom of Mopi.

The second Canaanite prince immediately bowed and said, "All of this is the work of the Magi. I will naturally not seek revenge against your army. I only hope that when my country clashes with the Magi, your army will treat us fairly..."

Ling Cao waved his hand: "That's your business, we don't care. But there's one condition: no matter how you resolve it, we want to rent this place for a hundred years..."

"I understand!"

Upon hearing Ling Cao's request, the second prince of Canaan quickly nodded in agreement.

He came to negotiate because he didn't want to clash with the Han army, and he didn't want to be labeled as a surrenderer and criticized by his other brothers.

Now that the Han army is willing to let him leave, he is naturally more than happy to accept it.

Subsequently, the second Canaanite prince led his soldiers out of the area and returned via the same route.

Upon learning that the Canaanites who had come to invade had been frightened away by the Han army, the local people, who had been frequently harassed, couldn't help but cheer and regarded the Han army as their protectors.